Getting To Grips With Job Management Software

You might think we’re biased, but we’re just going to say it; job management is coming of age.

We know that you’ve heard it all before and you’ve been told you must update practically every aspect of how you do everything from recruiting a new apprentice, electrician or plasterer to how you order materials and even how you file your taxes.

We’d wager that you’ve tried one or two different job management apps or software packages, sucked in by magical promises of hours of free time, less coffee-stained post-its and a whole lot less stress.

We know you’ve been left tearing your hair out, more stressed, less organised and altogether a bit fed up.

Bear with us.

Digital Has Come Of Age

You might dread the thought of trying a new product and consider it to be a total waste of your time.

We get it!

But, job management tools have evolved and developed considerably in the last few years so even if you have had a bad experience before, it doesn’t mean you will be left frustrated and stressed this time around.

If you can put in a bit of legwork up front – much like you’d go out and size up a job before giving your customer a quote – the right job management software, carefully chosen and properly set up, actually can make all the difference.

We know you’ve heard it all before but hear us out:

In the good old days you had an office phone and a receptionist. You could only receive calls when you were at home/in the office. Now, your mobile is as essential as your screwdriver and customers old and new can just as easily speak to you whether you’re under a sink staring at a leaking U-bend, stood on site up to your knees in the mud looking at plans for 10 new housesor sat in your van drying off.

Where you once had to log into Facebook when you actually wanted to publish an update, you can now upload a month’s worth of posts and leave your social media tool to decide when to publish them for you.

Your accounts software calculates your VAT without you having to break out the calculator.

Being in regular communication is now one of the average customer’s most basic expectations – the trades have a poor reputation historically for this, but a carefully chosen job management software tool could not only make this a reality, but it could also handle a lot of the heavy lifting too.

Streamlining The Quote Process Can Boost Sales and Customer Relations

One of the most frustrating things for many home and business owners is the amount of time they’re left waiting for a quote.

A quick Google search will return dozens of forums filled with homeowners asking how long they should be expected to wait for a quote.

Most say they don’t expect to wait more than a few days.

Some a few hours.

When you’re running a business, there’s a lot of behind the scenes work to take care of – and you’ll need to fit quotes around getting prices for materials, checking availability, fielding calls, traveling between jobs and most importantly, actually doing some work.

Having to then go back and start writing up quotes manually at the end of a long day is not just a killer for you – it can also kill off your chances of securing the work if the person in question has been left hanging.

If you’ve carried out your due diligence ahead of time and weighed up job management software against the four Ps of people, pricing, product, and process, you’ll find the right job management software helps you with more work.

Needless to say, this speed means you’ll be first in the running to win the work, while also impressing the customer with your efficiency.

Never a bad thing when you’re convincing them of your ability to get the job done!

Going Paperless – For Your Sanity and Theirs

If your works van has more papers than your desk, and your desk has more paper than your local office supplies store, then it could well be time to go paperless.

Not only do piles of paper everywhere create a sense of chaos, but they also make it near on impossible to work efficiently, put your hands on the job sheets, quotes and appointments when you need them.

Even worse, if you’re managing a team of plumbers, electricians or other trades professionals, you might not have a clue where someone is or where they should be and no means of sorting it out until you’re organised and filed a year’s worth of rubbish.

In the field, a job management system can also make it easy to pinpoint client details and lay your hands on your next appointments contact info at the touch of a button to let them know you’re on your way, delayed or even expecting to arrive early.

If you work from a trusty old notebook or scraps of paper, you’ve probably spent more time than you can remember hunting down notes from jobs, invoices, addresses and job specs. In the trades, time is money and paper could be costing you a bundle.

Turn Up Your Time Management For More Profit With Better Job Management

Not only does removing all the wasted time and effort you spend searching for job data give you more hours in the day, being on time for clients can bring more recommendations, better reviews and even repeat business.

When you have a full schedule, multiple jobs in progress, travel time and supplier stops to factor into every single day, it’s a wonder you can get by without a constant supply of aspirin.

As your business grows it can become almost impossible to stay efficient and arrive where you need to be, when you said you’d be there, using a paper diary alone.